


Cheers! To the new era!

by AlxAtz



Category: ATEEZ (Band), Stray Kids (Band), The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: ATEEZ (Band) Are Pirates, Alternative Universe - Kingdom, Blood, Blood and Injury, But I tag it just in case, It's sexy and romantic for 2 seconds, Kim Hongjoong is a sarcastis little shit, M/M, MAMA 2020 Inspired, Major character death - Freeform, Minor Character Death, Not a lot of blood, Stray Kids Emperors, The Boyz Royals, Threeway Kiss, Violence, Witch Park Seonghwa, Witchcraft, can't believe that's not a tag, fight for the crown, hexes, kingdom inspired
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:35:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27966932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlxAtz/pseuds/AlxAtz
Summary: “We want that crown,” Chan extended his hand in direction of Juyeon’s head, where said heavy crown was placed.Juyeon took it out and gave it to one of his men, a shorter delicate one, who put it on top of a column beside the throne, in exhibition for everyone to see.“That was easy,” Seonghwa hummed, “May I have one too?”“Seonghwa, that’s not your color,” the third pirate finally spoke, stepping forward to take a better look at it, but still from the distance, “replace those green stones for purple ones and it’s a deal.”Hongjoong snorted at that, “Purple is such an ugly color, San”“Purple is the color of the royalty,” one of Chan’s men said, one of the many whose name Hongjoong didn’t recognize.“Well, kid, royals have some of the worst taste out there.”----ATEEZ are pirates, The Boyz are fancy royals and Stray Kids are the new self proclaimed emperors and they fight for a piece of land.
Relationships: ATEEZ Ensemble/Everyone, Choi San/Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa, Choi San/Park Seonghwa, Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Comments: 16
Kudos: 87





	Cheers! To the new era!

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by the MAMA collaboration stage, there's blood (not too descriptive but still), and there are also a bunch of deaths here and there. Also mentions of magic and hexes. I think that covers it, so if you can deal with that, enjoy it!

“Why don’t you fight between you both and the winner fights then with me?” Juyeon, the reigning king said while looking at the two men and their armies standing in front of him.

Two different backgrounds for both of them. A neighbor kingdom trying to conquer more land, the self-proclaimed “new empire”, and a bunch of pirates that have been gaining a name the past years for the way they have always gotten what they wanted. None of them had lost a fight so far, not until now.

“And why don’t we both fight you and then fight each other?” Chan, the emperor, stepping forward despite the swords and arrows aiming at him, “Why should we let you live that long?”

Hongjoong laughed at that, “For an emperor you are quite stupid, Christopher,” he also stepped forward with his obscure aura, the soldiers hands shaking when he came close to them, walking with so much confidence near the swords, playing with the tips of them with his slender fingers, “He’ll plan while we fight for our lives, thought you’d be familiar with strategies by now.”

“Captain, I guess the tales are true,” a taller man stepped beside Hongjoong, “he has won by the use of brute force and clearly not his brain.”

That was Seonghwa, the pirate’s sorcerer, and he was getting way too close to the defensive lines, making them all shake with fear. He was known for being ruthless, even more than his captain. When he noticed the reaction, he let out a small dark chuckle, lifting both his hands as if in surrender, mockingly obviously, stepping back.

A loud growl fell out one of Chan’s men’s lips in annoyance, “At least we don’t cheat.”

“It’s not cheating, it’s an advantage, dear Felix,” Seonghwa smiled in his direction, delicate as always, sending a shiver through his spine. Of course Seonghwa would know their names, of fucking course.

Juyeon watched the exchange from his place on the throne, looking at his counselor, who gave him a shy nod, the guards lowering the swords and bows, grabbing the attention from his guests again.

“I notice not all your men are here,” the counselor spoke, “why’s that?”

“I have all my men here with me, don’t know what you mean,” Chan said, his seven well-known men standing behind him.

The counselor then turned to look at Hongjoong and Seonghwa, who only came with another man besides them both.

“Oh, you mean us?” Hongjoong faked confusion, “I got everyone I need, I won’t bring all my men to an insignificant negotiation.” Then he grinned with all his teeth, standing beside the dark haired pirate that came with them, “Didn’t think you’d want a full bunch of pirates inside, _your Highness_.” Clear sarcasm on the title.

“And what’s his name?” The counselor asked again.

“My apologies, _your Majesty_ , is your puppet going to carry the conversation from now on?” Hongjoong’s smile was as wide as it could be, he knew what he was doing and he was not going to hide it, not when it was dragging such a huge reaction filled with gasps all along the place.

“His name is Sangyeon and if you want to negotiate as you say, I’d expect some sort of respect towards him,” Juyeon frowned as he answered, trying to see what the intentions from both parties were, but both of them acted clearly so different about it.

_No one would’ve guessed the arrival of pirates and the so famous new conquerors to arrive to his kingdom at the same time. Of course he was always ready for an attack, so when Chan’s men tried to sneak to his chambers late at night he had been prepared, pinning one of them down with the tip of his sword above his nape. What he didn’t expect was for one of his men to arrive screaming, standing then in shock at the sight of his king with someone on the floor._

_“Emperor Chan’s men, apparently,” Juyeon had said, but the other stood there silent with a conflicted expression, “What is it, Kevin? Don’t worry your king like that.”_

_“I’m sorry, my Lord, but I’m just confused as to what are doing the Emperor’s men and the pirates here at the same time.”_

_Juyeon would never admit it, but he felt as if a bucket full of iced water was thrown at him, everything seemed to slow down but speed up at the same time, blurry patches of memory from where he was standing to then knocking out said man._

_“Look for the others, they must be somewhere, if possible, don’t kill them.”_

_“But, my Lord-”_

_“We don’t know if they brought more people or if they’re working together, we need them all.”_

_Kevin rushed to take the man on the floor to a cell or something of the sorts, Juyeon couldn’t bother asking, he needed to get with Sangyeon first, only to find him midway._

_Sangyeon looked at Juyeon and the fear in the younger’s eyes was way too clear. That was always his issue, he could never hide his emotions. One of his many flaws as a king._

_“My king,” Sangyeon bowed, walking past him knowing the younger one could follow, entering one of the many empty chambers there._

_“How did they get into the castle in the first place?” Juyeon spoke as soon as they were alone, feeling a headache starting to make its way._

_“Hush, my Lord, the walls may have ears,” Sangyeon murmured, getting closer to a shivering king, sighing while helping him sit on the hardwood floor, “our men need our king to stand strong.”_

_“I was just attacked before my sleep,” Juyeon’s voice was shaking slightly so he closed his eyes trying to gather his thoughts, “and now there are some pirates too.”_

_“Not any other pirates, my Lord, I’m afraid.”_

_“It can’t be them,” Juyeon looked at Sangyeon as if the man had grown a second head, pressure on his chest when he wasn’t proved wrong._

_“We’ll talk first, we have gold to spare, a negotiation may be the best option.”_

After having captured one of the Emperor’s men, whose name happened to be Hyunjin, they had no choice but to accept the offer of a negotiation, one where the pirates happened to take place too.

_“Looks like you were waiting for us,” Hongjoong said as soon as he anchored his ship, finding a few men standing by, clearly some guards since they were armed. But he got down with his men, swords around their waists but hands up in the air, “We want to talk to your king, tell him we’re here, I’m sure he’ll be delighted by our visit.”_

“So what is it that you both want here?” Juyeon asked, back reclined on his throne, needing some support from the heavy crown upon his head and also the exasperation this was bringing him.

The room stayed silent for a couple long seconds, thing that apparently was funny since Hongjoong’s chuckle filled the silence, dragging everyone’s attention towards them.

“So first everyone’s annoyed by the pirates, but if we don’t speak first no one does,” he turns around to meet his companions, the three of them shrugging clearly amused by his captain’s words, “I’ll let the _Chosen One_ speak first.”

“Keep that fucking attitude-”

“Drop it, Han, it’s not worth it,” Chan glanced at Hongjoong, which only made him laugh more, “We want that crown,” Chan extended his hand in direction of Juyeon’s head, where said heavy crown was placed.

Juyeon took it out and gave it to one of his men, a shorter delicate one, who put it on top of a column beside the throne, in exhibition for everyone to see.

“That was easy,” Seonghwa hummed, “May I have one too?”

“Seonghwa, that’s not your color,” the third pirate finally spoke, stepping forward to take a better look at it, but still from the distance, “replace those green stones for purple ones and it’s a deal.”

Hongjoong snorted at that, “Purple is such an ugly color, San”

“Purple is the color of the royalty,” one of Chan’s men said, one of the many whose name Hongjoong didn’t recognize.

“Well, kid, royals have some of the worst taste out there.”

“Can’t you be serious?” Chan was starting to lose his composure, “He knows what I mean, don’t you, King?”

Hongjoong tried his best to muffle his laugh by biting his lips, making almost everyone in the room roll their eyes.

Juyeon was still keeping an eye on him, “I do know what you mean, and you’re free to take that crown, but not my title or land.”

“I could get one just like that, it’s not the gold I’m after.”

“Oh, but we are,” Hongjoong stepped forward again, getting next to the crown and taking it with both his hands, having now multiple swords aimed at him. Again. Which made him laugh and roll his eyes, stepping back with the crown still in his possession, “ _Your Lord_ was practically gifting it to the man who wanted to take away his kingdom, I think _I_ can get a good look.” Now it was Hongjoong who looked annoyed.

And who could really blame him? A moron was getting a gift after admitting out loud they wanted to take away both the land and title and yet he was the one getting the dirty looks? Bullshit.

He was about to pass the crown onto Seonghwa when an arrow was shoot at them, Seonghwa capturing it on mid air, making both of them look at the responsible for it.

“We have done nothing,” Hongjoong spit, “we are not the ones threatening your _Royal Doll_ position,” eyes denoting anger, “but somehow me taking a look at a fucking piece of gold is a threat?” A dark laugh after that, everyone uncomfortable at that point, “Thought you were smarter than that, but you’re only a pretty face for the throne.”

An awkward silence filled the room, Seonghwa finally taking the crown, San by his side, both of them playing with it as if it was a toy, throwing it around and making it spin.

“We would feel more comfortable if your…” Sangyeon took a long look at Seonghwa, “Crewmate had his hands tied.”

“Oh, darling, I was waiting you’d ask, but I didn’t take you for an exhibitionist,” Seonghwa made his way in order to stand before the man, taking the liberty to run a hand very close to his cheek without ever actually touching the skin, “Don’t worry, I don’t mind a good show…” He whispered the last part, eyes wandering over Juyeon who was watching them not so discretely, making Seonghwa smile wide, taking a few steps back, signaling for Hongjoong and San to get on his side, giving his back to the throne, “Before you do so, let me use them one last time.” He winked at both his companions and cupped their faces before leaning in and kissing them at the same time, making the kiss as loud, noisy and vocal as possible.

The kiss was starting to heat up and none of the pirates looked like they were planning to put it to an end, and apparently, no one had the ability to do it either. Some were looking at them, unable to look somewhere else; some others found really interesting spots on the walls or the floor. Eventually heavy breaths could be heard and not only from the three pirates. Finally, two guards had to separate Seonghwa from them in order to cuff his hands to the front of his body with some rough chains. Wide smile spreading on his lips, winking his eye at them once they let him get back with his companions.

“Can we continue?” Chan looked disgusted and conflicted to say the least, making the three pirates grin.

“Don’t let us interrupt your useless negotiation, let us know when it’s our turn,” San said, hugging Seonghwa from the back, resting his chin on his shoulder.

The other two kept bickering, “negotiation” they said, but none of them wanted to give in. Chan wanted everything and Juyeon was not about giving anything, and the conversation was turning into a heated one.

“It’s getting pretty boring, don’t you think?” San yawned. It has been a while and the three of them opted on sitting on the floor while they wait, looking around the kingdom’s men. Not all of them were inside the room, so he supposed the other were guarding the doors or doing something like licking the king’s boots clean.

“I know, we should spice it a little bit,” Hongjoong looked to where the discussion was taking place, noticing the emperor’s men get impatient.

“Should not be long before it gets fun,” Seonghwa smiled at them, raising one of his eyebrows playfully. He was about to say something else when someone shoved him to the floor and took the crown that was posed carefully over his lap.

That was clearly one of the Emperor’s men, long blonde messy hair, the one they heard sneaked into the king’s chamber to kill him.

San was about to put up against him when he felt both Seonghwa and Hongjoong stop him gently, deciding to just watch for now.

“You do not deserve a crown like this!” Were the words that came out of his mouth, standing beside Chan, handing him the crown, “You don’t even know what you’re doing on that throne. We have gone nowhere with this negotiation.”

The swords were finally all aimed at him, a nice change for once.

The three pirates exchanged a look, their sight wandering between the scene and the gates at the other side of the room, which have remained closed since they arrived. Excitement buzzing through their skin, finally something good after so long.

Chan put the crown above his head, clearly heavier than he expected it to be since it made him lose some balance on his place, trying to hide it by walking forward, arrows ready to shot at any moment. He stood a few feet away the throne.

“This is what a real governor looks like!” venom in his words, “All the time we’ve been here you have been sitting comfortably, not even moving a finger,” he spit the floor then, “you’re a fucking joke.”

Sangyeon tried to reach Juyeon in order to stop him, but that didn’t work since Juyeon came down the throne, walking until the tips of his feet crashed against Chan’s own, hands reaching out to grab the crown.

But as soon as his fingers touched it, Chan’s body fell to the floor with a loud thump.

Juyeon stood there with the crown on his hands and a body at his feet, he was frozen in place, he didn’t even notice the angry eyes of the Emperor’s men on him.

He quickly turned to Sangyeon, “I didn’t do it,” Sangyeon didn’t walk towards him, “I would never, you know I would never…”

“Kill?” Hongjoong tilted his head at the scene, smiling in a condescending way, “There’s always a first time for everything.”

“I just lifted the crown from his head…”

“No, you didn’t,” Seonghwa answered, “look at the marks on his skull, you got angry and pressed down on it,” and it was true, there were clear signs of trauma, “it’s a pretty heavy crown. Looks like you hit him with it.”

Hyunjin was the first one to go get their fallen leader, loud gasp falling from his lips.

“He’s dead.”

It looked like the uproar was about to start, Juyeon and Sangyeon watching everything in disbelief. Until it clicked.

“The warlock,” Sangyeon said, “he did it,” voice loud in disbelief, “he killed him.”

Eyes turned to Seonghwa, who lifted his hands, the ones that were still cuffed just as before.

“You’d be wrong, but thanks for the credit, puppet.”

Hongjoong stood up finally, stretching his arms and back, cracking some of his bones, “If you are to die right now, you should at least do it right, _Your Excellency._ ”

Juyeon put the crown over his head and reached for his sword, only to find it gone. What?

A loud sigh fell from Seonghwa’s lips, who got up and stretched his cuffed arms, only for the chain to fall to the floor, San following next, biting something that looked like keys.

Before anyone could ask anything, arrows shoot.

Grunts and bodies to the ground.

But the ones who shot weren’t Juyeon’s men. He didn’t recognize any of them. And when he looked at their feet, that’s where he found his guards. In front of him lied also Chan’s men. Someone was being shoved to his side, it was Sangyeon, all in one piece still, and it should not bring him comfort but it did. Maybe, just maybe…

“Don’t go that fast, _Your Grace_ ,” Hongjoong put a hand around his neck, applying enough pressure to make him feel dizzy, “we’re not quite done yet, look.” He forced him to look at the floor, where Chan’s men were still alive but in pain clearly.

“They’re fighting for their lives,” A new voice resonated behind him, probably from the one that was holding Sangyeon next to him, “unlike yours.”

“When did you all get in here? The gates are closed,” Sangyeon murmured, trying to see what he missed, only for the gates to open and reveal a tall blonde man with a dripping sword in hand, eating something that looked like an apple with his free hand.

Behind him, splashes of blood could be seen and also bodies lying around on the floor. The horrified look on his face made the other one smile, taking another bite of the fruit, winking at him while making his way behind the whimpering men.

“Before you ask the obvious question,” San said with clear annoyance in his voice, “you all were busy with that stupid negotiation to even notice your men crying for their king,” referring to the men outside the gates, “so busy to notice that when Chan’s dead body flopped to the floor we opened the door and killed your men too,” San sighed, kicking the soulless head of one of them, “what an awful ruler.”

Silence reigned between them, they could hear some of the other men stop whimpering, and that made Juyeon more anxious, looking around. He had no men and everything was so blurry, only thing keeping him from falling being the hand around his throat and Sangyeon’s breath on the back of his neck. No matter how hard he tried to think, there was no way out.

“Thought you only wanted gold,” Sangyeon spoke again, hissing when he got pushed forward, shoulder clasping on Juyeon’s back, “why are you doing this?”

“The same reason everyone wants to be king,” Hongjoong said laughing as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Except this time it was. Sangyeon was well aware of it, everyone was. No one ever arrived to the throne with clean hands unless they’re freshly washed. Still, he never expected a couple of pirates to be the ones to finally come to put everything he’s worked so hard for to an end. It was comical even, he chuckled a bit and looked at his red-haired King, he couldn’t help the angry look he gave him. There was no point in hiding his emotions anymore.

“That’s it, Sangyeon, that’s right,” Seonghwa said, lips brushing his earlobe and a hand caressing his lower back, “it’s okay to be angry. A dumb boy couldn’t handle such a simple situation and you’re losing everything you have worked for…” a bite to his neck, so soft and sweet he could’ve imagined it, “No one else is watching you, let it go.”

“We all know that crown is truly yours,” a tall black-haired pirate spoke now, jumping in order to not step in any of the bodies below him while making his way to stand next to Hongjoong, taking the dirt out of his nails with the tip of an arrow, so careless, “take it, you can do it now.”

Juyeon closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He is a King. Or was he?

He was trained for this, all those lessons, his family had raised him to be the perfect heir, to be _The Greatest_. Yet here he was. At the mercy of some pirates and with his counselor being seduced by his side.

“Sangyeon, I-”

“You could never handle anything,” Sangyeon spoke, his voice with something he has never heard before, “always crying like a three year old,” Juyeon could feel Sangyeon’s hands ghost the back of his head, “couldn’t even fend for yourself in battle.”

Before Sangyeon could get his hands on the crown, a loud scream was heard, making all of them look to the source, finding San bent in half, arrow on his stomach and Hyunjin trying his best to push it further from his place on the floor.

“None of you are getting away with this,” Hyunjin’s breath was heavy, it was very difficult for him to keep going, “I only got shot by an arrow on my shoulder and I feel like dying,” he managed to push the arrow a bit more, making San gasp, “you’re going to pay or this.”

Juyeon and Sangyeon were watching the scene with both hope and horror.

No one moved.

Only a hyena-like laugh could be heard from somewhere in the room.

“San, leave the drama for later,” the man made his way towards the injured men, still keeping his distance, “you can do your own show once we’re done here.”

At that San let out a grunt when Hyunjin tried to keep going. Then he laughed standing straight, pushing away the younger’s hand and taking the arrow out of his body, throwing it to the floor, grabbing Hyunjin by the collar and lifting him from the floor.

“This one’s a good one,” San said, carrying him on his shoulders, “I’ll keep it.”

The pirates shrugged and resumed to where they were before, but the other two remained in shock.

“How did you do that?” Juyeon gathered the courage to speak, fear clear in his eyes, voice airy because of the hand around his throat.

San and Seonghwa laughed in unison, Seonghwa being the one to answer, “A snake can’t die with its own venom.”

Sangyeon tried to understand and link it all together.

“The kiss.”

Hongjoong huffed and tightened his grip around Juyeon’s throat, “Yeosang, I’m tired, I’ll end it.”

A taller man than Hongjoong with long blonde hair stood then behind him, putting his hand above Hongjoong’s where he was griping Juyeon’s neck, Hongjoong then taking his out and Yeosang being quick to equal the strong grip that was there before, not even giving time for Juyeon to blink or breath, a small whimper falling out his lips.

Sangyeon no longer knew what to do, but Hongjoong did, so he lifted the crown from Juyeon’s head and was quick to place it upon Sangyeon’s. Not even three seconds later, Juyeon’s body hit the floor just like Chan’s had done. Sangyeon wanted to take off the crown, but a couple of hands only pushed it further, making him scream in pain.

“Oh, I know, I know…” Seonghwa hushed, “Power hurts, baby, but this is what you always wanted, right?”

Sangyeon shook his head, and then someone slapped him across the face, Hongjoong smiling with all his teeth.

“Don’t lie, we know it’s true,” he then caressed the slapped cheek with his thumb as if he was not the one who had done it in the first place, “now, by now you may have noticed what the crown does when you lift it,” at that Sangyeon’s blood pressure fell, “so don’t think about taking it out anytime soon.”

“But it’s inevitable,” Sangyeon looked around in panic, “you could take it off from me in any second.”

“Oh, wow, you’re smart,” Hongjoong clapped his hands a couple times congratulating him, “if that’s what you’re worried about, be no more.”

“He have our own blacksmith,” Seonghwa said, pointing at a man standing next to the throne, sitting on the arm of it, waving excitedly at him, gummy smile on display, “he can fuse it with your skin in no time.”

Sangyeon almost fell to the floor if it weren’t for the hands holding him up straight, “Please no, don’t do that,” he looked for Seonghwa with his eyes, “you can put a spell on it so it doesn’t fall, can’t you?”

“I can, you’re right,” Seonghwa leaned in, so close they were sharing the same breath again, “but I thought you liked me better with my hands tied.”

They all laughed and made Sangyeon walk through the gates all the way to the royal library, where all the important thing were kept, playing with him, making him trip, spin and whatnot, making him grab and try to push down the crown on his head so it wouldn’t fall, hurting, making him bleed from the pressure.

“You’ll pass us down the Kingdom and everything in it and maybe we’ll lift up the hex,” San said, still carrying the breathless body around like a ragdoll, managing still to push him hard, making him hit his shoulder against the wall. Everyone laughing at him.

_“What are we even going to do there?” Wooyoung was whining while cleaning the main deck of the ship._

_They had been sailing for days and the food was running out, so of course it made sense to make a stop, but they could’ve had one ports ago, and now the closet one was a kingdom, and they would have to anchor the ship right in front the town. Not like they would be welcome there with their fame. And clearly doing it in a concurred site didn’t seem, well, smart._

_Hongjoong shared a look with Seonghwa, followed by a smile and a couple claps that they knew meant a crew gathering._

_Soon enough they were all placed around the helm. The space was not big enough to fit them all sitting, so they stood all next to each other while waiting for someone to speak._

_“I need to make dinner with yesterday’s leftovers,” Yeosang said, clearly annoyed at the silence, “so if this is not a solution to that, I would rather go back inside.”_

_Hongjoong chuckled at that and placed an arm around Yeosang’s shoulders, “You won’t have to cook ever again.”_

_That obviously grabbed everyone’s attention, making them shift in their places to be more attentive._

_“As all of you know, we just defeated an enemy’s ship a couple weeks ago,” Seonghwa said and waited for them all to nod, “they were the new emperor’s men,” that made them all frown. Of course they had seen something oddly expensive in those ships, which is where all the good remaining food had come from, yet, they didn’t expect that to be the reason why, “and thankfully the walls always have ears.”_

_Seonghwa had joined them not too many years ago. They captured him from another ship, their win being relatively easy that time. Seonghwa had been a prisoner before they captured him, and he never showed resistance, they never understood why. Until on a fight they left him behind despite him insisting he could be of help, but how could they believe him when the man looked like the weakest from all of them? They were losing, wounds everywhere and men down. They all remember the same thing, that’s how they knew it had happened. The enemy crew started screaming and running away, but before they could, they all cracked their own necks and fell to the floor. When they all looked back, there was Seonghwa surrounded by an indigo aura, but before any of them could get up or speak, darkness overloaded their senses. When they all woke up, they were all laying down in the main deck with some fabrics over their bodies and a worried Seonghwa sweating in the middle of them trying to heal them all at the same time. Hongjoong was quick to trust him, and if their captain did, so did they._

_Now every time he gave them new information, they all listened carefully. It made them almost invincible, and they loved it._

_“What did the walls said?” Mingi asked._

_“Emperor Chan is arriving in a few days in our next stop,” Seonghwa said, “thought you’d all like to meet him.”_

_They all took a moment to read between the lines of that statement, their eyes widening when they all got it. Hongjoong and Seonghwa were planning to take over._

_“They could get together and destroy us,” Wooyoung said, “no offense, Seonghwa, but I don’t think even with your help we could be able to win that.”_

_“But they won’t,” Hongjoong spoke finally, “Christopher wants to take Juyeon’s crown,” and they all got it, “he won’t make a team with him. Not even if it’s against us.”_

_“We’re going to take them both down,” Seonghwa and Hongjoong had been planning it ever since Seonghwa had told him that information, “one by one. They won’t even know we did it.”_

_And so that was the plan. They would arrive a couple hours after Chan, that way they’d be seen, their intentions masked by their careless arrival. All of them would be taken to the castle, but only San, Hongjoong and Seonghwa would enter to negotiate, annoying them, making them overlook their actions as just some pirate bullshit._

_On the outside, the rest of them would take down every other guard, sneaking around and killing them as quietly as possible, waiting for the sign to enter._

**_“Royals are always worried about the crown, so we’ll let them fight for it. I will hex it and protect us from it just in case, you’ll know when I do it, it’ll be obvious for us but not for them. When the first one falls, you’ll enter, they’ll be worried trying to figure out what happened they won’t notice all the dead bodies around.”_ **

That’s how they ended up like that. Sangyeon sitting in front of the library’s desk, papers and pen in hand. He had refused to do it, but it didn’t matter, because Seonghwa made him do it, body moving against his own will. Losing everything he had worked for all these years. Standing in the dark so he could not be seen while doing so. All to waste.

Once he was done, his eyes were covered in tears mixing with the blood in his face, knuckles white from the hard grip he had on the pen while trying to fight the enchantment. Hongjoong sat on the table beside the multiple documents, playing with the ink, dipping his finger in and staining Sangyeon’s face with it, laughing at his doings, earning some spit land on his eye from the ex-counselor.

“I like it better when it lands in my mouth, thank you very much,” Hongjoong wiped it with his clean hand, cleaning it then on Sangyeon’s clothes.

“I did what you asked, now let me go.”

“You didn’t do anything, Seonghwa made you do it,” Hongjoong shrugged, and Sangyeon felt fear again, “but I can’t get rid of you just yet, I need a royal advisor or whatever it is you did for that useless kid.”

“I won’t help you, I’d rather be killed.”

San dropped the body he was carrying, and it let out a muffled moan. So he was still alive after all, Sangyeon thought, but before he could wonder what they kept him for, San was gripping his cheeks hard with one hand.

“I’ll gladly do it, but we do need you, sadly,” San said, and it looked like he was about to say something else when he was hushed.

“We don’t need him,” Seonghwa said, knocking at the wall, “we’ll figure it out on our own,” he smiled, almost as devilish as Hongjoong, “we’re the new emperors after all.”

San shrugged, getting Juyeon’s sword and lifting it above Sangyeon’s head, “Any last words?”

“You need all the secrets, killing me is a mistake.”

All of them laughed, Seonghwa brushed his lips against his neck, kissing it gently, and then, he whispered into his ear, “The walls do have ears, _My Lord_.”

Hongjoong pushed aside the papers so they wouldn’t get dirty with Sangyeon’s blood, once San slid his throat, letting out an annoyed grunt by it, “You could’ve just taken off the crown, you bastard.”

“It would not have been fun, three deaths like that on a row becomes boring,” San said, cleaning the sword in Sangyeon’s pants.

“Also,” Hongjoong looked down to Hyunjin’s body, “what do you plan to do with that?”

San laughed and kneeled to run his finger through those blond locks, “We have so many kingdoms and lands, we need a puppet. This one seemed close to Chan, so we could put him on the front, make us look like merciful rulers and all,” he then looked up to see Hongjoong, who didn’t look convinced, “Look, think about it, if you don’t deem it useful, I’ll just kill him too. No big deal.”

“It’s a shame that crown is now hexed,” Yeosang sighed kicking it from its place in the floor, the sound of metal rolling filling the space, “it was kind of pretty.”

“Our pretty Jongho can make us all matching crowns, isn’t that right?” Hongjoong looked at the younger, who smiled back at him.

“Of course, Captain,” he then took a look around him, “I could take some inspiration from the place to make them.”

“Isn’t it stupid that we won because they were fighting to wear a fucking crown?” Yunho kicked the crown again, giggling, “The whole discussion was over a fucking crown.”

“That’s what makes us different,” Hongjoong said, taking a look at all his crew, years of hiding and living hopeless in the middle of the sea, always fighting to know if they were going to eat the next month. He smiled, but this time it was soft, he was happy, “they didn’t have to fight to live, so they don’t know what truly matters.”

Seonghwa leaned in to place a kiss on the corner of his mouth, eyes glowing dark.

Mingi got up with so much noise as always, breaking the romantic aura, bringing laughter from everyone, he was looking for something in his many pockets, finally finding it after a while, showing them all a bottle with a golden brown liquid inside, placing it on the table, some fancy liquor, “I found it in the kitchen and I think it’s the perfect time to open it,” he bit the cork to get it out with a loud pop, drinking from it and offering it then to Hongjoong and Seonghwa, “To the new era.”

To the new era.

**Author's Note:**

> My mind came up with this as soon as I finished watching the stages and I had to write it, sorry if it's a bit messy, we still struggling with the editing part. My Twitter is @YE0PUP and my cc is linked there. Please leave comments and kudos! I appreciate them a lot.


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